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Moon Rabbit finally feels snug as a bug in its Penn Quarter home, and I’m finding lots of reasons to return for more. Chef Kevin Tien’s modern Vietnamese standout, which relocated here from the Wharf in 2024, is hosting cool collabs as of late (I had my first seasonal taste of soft shell crabs at the Bas Rouge pop-up this week), in addition to turning out some of the best desserts in the country; Moon Rabbit’s Susan Bae is a James Beard Award finalist (again) for Outstanding Pastry Chef, two years in a row.
Last month, I got to sample a nice cross-section of the menu during a D.C. industry dinner Moon Rabbit hosted to welcome the team from Uchi — the Texas-born sushi restaurant where Tien cut his teeth — that's growing nationally and opening in Dupont soon. The who’s-who meal in Moon Rabbit’s stylish new private dining room included the owner of D.C.’s hottest new bar Eebee’s; the founder of Echostage nightclub; the president of Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington; Chiko chef Scott Drewno; and TV star Carla Hall, to name a few.
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A seafood-fueled starter at Moon Rabbit. | Tierney Plumb/Eater DC |
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Our group wasted no time pulling apart the fluffy milk bread, which begs to be dipped into an egg-shaped pat of butter that gets its green from cilantro ($14).
Water fern rice cakes are another good way to start ($19). The flat, bite-sized discs — topped with cubes of caramelized king trumpet mushrooms, sunchoke XO, herbs, and ginger oil — are slippery suckers, for sure; mine fell from the plate to the table (which I obviously still ate).
Lemongrass pork is a must-try main from its “from the land” menu section. Mouthwatering slices of Berkshire pork chop slathered in XO jus came topped with Honeycrisp apple slices (and now, seasonal peach) alongside sticky rice ($42).
Bae’s green curry sponge cake, a hit since day one, showcases avocado sorbet, soursop mousse, fish sauce caramel, and finger lime ($18). She also has stellar surprises that swing savory on any given day.
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Thi Nguyen, named one of Punch’s best new bartenders in 2024, continues to kill it behind the bar. Like Bae, she cross-pollinates lots of ingredients from the kitchen. A syrup made of fish sauce builds a best-selling highball ($19), pictured below.
Her growing cocktail collection finds room in the glass for unexpected elements like shiso butter, purple yam milk, beef broth-infused Haku vodka, and Tien’s pho seasoning.
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The bar up front is full of eye candy, from faux Labubus sitting alongside bottles of fragrant Vietnamese gins and rice-infused ryes to a cute display of drawings from Tien’s toddler.
The host stand sets the playful tone with collectable Lego minifigures behind a frame, plus tiny porcelain bunnies and moons perched on a sandy plate.
The fine dining room is also very fun, lined with McDonald’s Happy Meal toys, nods to Tien's celebrity crush, Taylor Swift, and stacks of his favorite cookbooks.
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Burnt Hill's new 12-seat counter overlooks the Appalachians. | Terragold Photo |
Burnt Hill Farm — Montgomery County’s months-old vineyard that raises Mangalica pigs (the “wagyu” of pork) and grows its own orchards — is finally ready to unveil its exciting tasting room from executive chef-partner Tae Strain. But you’ll have to wait a little longer (next month) to snag a seat; the first reservations for May were gobbled up this week in a mere six minutes, a rep tells Eater.
Lou Bernard, the beverage director of Michelin-starred Mita, goes back to his Shaw roots this month. Ethiopian chef Elias Taddesse hired him to reinvent the bar at nearby Melange, which opened last year in the old Roy Boys space that Bernard helped open in 2019. New cocktails, like a berbere-spiced margarita, just went live under his watch.
New Orleans’ boozy breakfast institution Brennan's (and its third-generation owner, Ralph Brennan) hit the road in celebration of its 80th anniversary, starting with a three-day pit spot in D.C. at the Occidental (Friday, April 17 to Sunday, April 19), from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., to serve its greatest hits like bananas Foster flambéed tableside and brandy milk punch.
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